After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing conducted on some of the atolls between 1947 and 1962 (67 tests total). The Marshall Islands hosts the US Army Kwajalein Atoll Reagan Missile Test Site, a key installation in the US missile defense network. Kwajalein also hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system (the others are at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US), on Ascension (Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha), and at Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory)).

Geography :: Marshall Islands

Location:

Oceania, consists of 29 atolls and five isolated islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and Australia; the atolls and islands are situated in two, almost-parallel island chains - the Ratak (Sunrise) group and the Ralik (Sunset) group; the total number of islands and islets is about 1,225; 22 of the atolls and four of the islands are uninhabited

Geographic coordinates:

9 00 N, 168 00 E

Map references:

Oceania

Area:

total:181 sq km

land:181 sq km

water:0 sq km

note: the archipelago includes 11,673 sq km of lagoon waters and encompasses the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik

country comparison to the world:
217

Area - comparative:

about the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

370.4 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea:12nm

exclusive economic zone:200nm

contiguous zone:24nm

Climate:

tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt

the islands of Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein atoll, famous as a World War II battleground, surrounds the world's largest lagoon and is used as a US missile test range; the island city of Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific

This is the population pyramid for the Marshall Islands. A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Median age:

total:23.1 years

male:23 years

female:23.2 years(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
176

Population growth rate:

1.5%(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
72

Birth rate:

23.8 births/1,000 population(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
53

Death rate:

4.2 deaths/1,000 population(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
207

Net migration rate:

-4.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
190

Population distribution:

most people live in urban clusters found on many of the country's islands; more than two-thirds of the population lives on the atolls of Majuro and Ebeye

Urbanization:

urban population:77% of total population(2018)

rate of urbanization:0.61% annual rate of change(2015-20 est.)

Major urban areas - population:

31,000 MAJURO (capital)
(2018)

Sex ratio:

at birth:1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years:1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years:1.04 male(s)/female

55-64 years:1 male(s)/female

65 years and over:0.97 male(s)/female

total population:1.03 male(s)/female(2018 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total:18.7 deaths/1,000 live births

male:21.1 deaths/1,000 live births

female:16.1 deaths/1,000 live births(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
84

Life expectancy at birth:

total population:73.6 years

male:71.4 years

female:76 years(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
135

Total fertility rate:

2.98 children born/woman(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
53

Drinking water source:

improved:urban:93.5% of population

rural:97.6% of population

total:94.6% of population

unimproved:urban:6.5% of population

rural:2.4% of population

total:5.4% of population(2015 est.)

Current Health Expenditure:

22.1%(2015)

Physicians density:

0.46 physicians/1,000 population(2012)

Hospital bed density:

2.7 beds/1,000 population(2010)

Sanitation facility access:

improved:urban:84.5% of population(2015 est.)

rural:56.2% of population(2015 est.)

total:76.9% of population(2015 est.)

unimproved:urban:15.5% of population(2015 est.)

rural:43.8% of population(2015 est.)

total:23.1% of population(2015 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

NA

Major infectious diseases:

note: active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:

52.9%(2016)

country comparison to the world:
4

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:

11.9%(2017)

country comparison to the world:
55

Education expenditures:

NA

Literacy:

definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
(2011 est.)

total population:98.3%

male:98.3%

female:98.2%(2011 est.)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24:

total:11%

male:12.2%

female:8.7%(2010 est.)

country comparison to the world:
119

Government :: Marshall Islands

Country name:

conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands

conventional short form:
Marshall Islands

local long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands

local short form:
Marshall Islands

former:
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Marshall Islands District

abbreviation:
RMI

etymology:
named after British Captain John MARSHALL, who charted many of the islands in 1788

Government type:

presidential republic in free association with the US

Capital:

name:
Majuro; note - the capital is an atoll of 64 islands; governmental buildings are housed on three fused islands: Djarrit, Uliga, and Delap

amendments:
proposed by the National Parliament or by a constitutional convention; passage by Parliament requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the total membership in each of two readings and approval by a majority of votes in a referendum; amendments submitted by a constitutional convention require approval of at least two-thirds of votes in a referendum; amended several times, last in 1995
(2018)

Legal system:

mixed legal system of US and English common law, customary law, and local statutes

note: Hilda C. HEINE is the first female elected head of state of any Pacific island nation

Legislative branch:

description:
unicameral National Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members in single- and multi-seat constituencies directly elected by simple majority vote to serve 4-year terms); note - the Council of Iroij, a 12-member group of tribal leaders advises the Presidential Cabinet and reviews legislation affecting customary law or any traditional practice)

elections:
last held on 16 November 2015 (next to be held by November 2019)

highest courts:
Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and other judges as prescribed by law)

judge selection and term of office:
judges appointed by the Cabinet upon the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission and upon the approval of the Nitijela; judges appointed until retirement, normally at age 72

traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Aelon Kein Ad Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING]

blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays appears on the hoist side above the two stripes; blue represents the Pacific Ocean, the orange stripe signifies the Ralik Chain or sunset and courage, while the white stripe signifies the Ratak Chain or sunrise and peace; the star symbolizes the cross of Christianity, each of the 24 rays designates one of the electoral districts in the country and the four larger rays highlight the principal cultural centers of Majuro, Jaluit, Wotje, and Ebeye; the rising diagonal band can also be interpreted as representing the equator, with the star showing the archipelago's position just to the north

National symbol(s):

a 24-rayed star; national colors: blue, white, orange

National anthem:

name:
Forever Marshall Islands

lyrics/music:
Amata KABUA

note: adopted 1981

Economy :: Marshall Islands

Economy - overview:

US assistance and lease payments for the use of Kwajalein Atoll as a US military base are the mainstay of this small island country. Agricultural production, primarily subsistence, is concentrated on small farms; the most important commercial crops are coconuts and breadfruit. Industry is limited to handicrafts, tuna processing, and copra. Tourism holds some potential. The islands and atolls have few natural resources, and imports exceed exports.

The Marshall Islands received roughly $1 billion in aid from the US during the period 1986-2001 under the original Compact of Free Association (Compact). In 2002 and 2003, the US and the Marshall Islands renegotiated the Compact's financial package for a 20-year period, 2004 to 2024. Under the amended Compact, the Marshall Islands will receive roughly $1.5 billion in direct US assistance. Under the amended Compact, the US and Marshall Islands are also jointly funding a Trust Fund for the people of the Marshall Islands that will provide an income stream beyond 2024, when direct Compact aid ends.

some telecom infrastructure improvements made in recent years; modern services include fiber optic cable service, cellular, Internet, international calling, caller ID, and leased data circuits; the US Government, World Bank, UN and International Telecommunication Union (ITU), have aided in improvements and monetary aid to the islands telecom; mobile penetrations is around 30%; radio communication is especially vital to remote islands

(2018)

domestic:
Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by high frequency radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) and mini-satellite telephones; fixed-line 3 per 100 persons and mobile-cellular is 21 per 100 persons
(2018)

no TV broadcast station; a cable network is available on Majuro with programming via videotape replay and satellite relays; 4 radio broadcast stations; American Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) provides satellite radio and television service to Kwajalein Atoll
(2019)

Internet country code:

.mh

Internet users:

total:21,857

percent of population:29.8%(July 2016 est.)

country comparison to the world:
203

Broadband - fixed subscriptions:

total:1,000

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants:1(2017 est.)

country comparison to the world:
192

Communications - note:

Kwajalein hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system (the others are at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US), on Ascension (Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha), and at Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory))

current situation:
The Marshall Islands is a source and destination country for Marshallese women and girls and women from East Asia subjected to sex trafficking; Marshallese and foreign women are forced into prostitution in businesses frequented by crew members of fishing and transshipping vessels that dock in Majuro; some Chinese women are recruited to the Marshall Islands with promises of legitimate work and are subsequently forced into prostitution

tier rating:
Tier 3 – The Marshall Islands do not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; the government made no anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts, including developing a written plan to combat trafficking; no new trafficking investigations were opened in 2014, and no prosecutions or convictions were made for the fourth consecutive year; no efforts were made to identify trafficking victims, especially among women in prostitution or men working on foreign fishing vessels in Marshallese waters, and no attempt was made to ensure their access to protective services; limited awareness-raising events were conducted by an international organization (2015)